The Dark & Fascinating Story Of The Man Who Created Santa Claus

Santa as he is known today first appeared in 1863 — a year which was notable for the fact that the American Civil War was in full swing. It's no coincidence that Santa appeared to spread a little holiday cheer, thanks to artist Thomas Nast. Here's his fascinating and occasionally dark story.

During the 19th century, Christmas made the jump from a somber religious holiday to the gift-and-merriment fest more familiar to 21st-century eyes, and Santa's a huge part of that. Interestingly, Santa Claus in his all too familiar jolly old elf form first showed up in a pair of Harper's Weekly cartoons that ran after Christmas, in January of 1863.

In one, a bearded Santa clad in stars and stripes is handing out toys to Union soldiers, including a doll in the likeness of Confederate president Jefferson Davis, dangling from a rope around its neck. The other features two separate drawings. As seen here, on one side, a woman looks forlornly out a window, and on the other side, a soldier sits staring into a fire. The background is part Christmas Eve, complete with Santa getting ready to hop down a chimney, and part cemetery. It was powerful stuff that drove home just how many people were separated by war, during that Christmas season.

Those images were the work of a Bavarian immigrant named Thomas Nast. Between 1863 and 1886, Nast would create 33 Christmas illustrations featuring a version of Santa that was part self-portrait, and partially based on works like A Visit from St. Nicholas and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.

During the war, he used Santa to illustrate his beliefs in civil rights and the abolition of slavery, and afterward, Santa got on board with other causes.

#SantaClaus #Holidays

Christmas Cartooning | 00:17
Christmas Propaganda | 1:38
Drawing was life for Thomas Nast | 2:35
Nast and the Civil War | 3:44
The donkey and the elephant | 4:54
The origins of Uncle Same | 5:56
Hatred of the Irish | 7:13
Thomas Nast vs. Tammany Hall | 8:19
Career success | 9:30
Fall from grace | 10:33
An unlikely end | 11:27

Read Full Article: https://www.grunge.com/286489/the-crazy-real-life-story-of-the-man-who-created-santa-claus/